RE: Tipping take-out Post

ndzenowski

Hi everyone! My name is Nicole and I'm here to tell you about my last job, Ruby Tuesday. I was a server at Ruby Tuesday but occasionally, like all the other servers, I was scheduled a "To Go" shift. Basically I was required to take your order, make sure it was right, bring it out to you and all the stuff inbetween. On busy nights, togo could be MUCH harsher than regular serving.I made 4.00 an hour. I was technically considered a 'tipped' employee but we were NOT allowed to ask you for a tip. I've gone whole nights (friday, saturday, days where I made the money to pay my bills) making 7 or 13 dollars b/c no one thought to tip me.I worked at Taco Bell for 4 years and ToGo at Ruby Tuesday was NO WHERE near what working at fast food was. A lot more work and time is put into your order.Sorry this is long but if you don't know, you won't tip!

ndzenowski

Actually, we were allowed to ask to add a 10% gratuity to the ToGo orders for quite some time which is why I said this.

noelle24

I would never ASK someone for a tip.  But it is true that people tend to forget that putting together a take-out order takes work, sometimes more than an in-house meal.  And in my experience, most people never tip when they order take-out.  When I worked as a server, all of us would be magically "busy" when the take-out phone rang because none of us wanted to take the time away from our tables to put together the take-out orders that would never result in a tip.

ndzenowski

Really? I assume a piss poor waitress. Regardless of whether or not the "food industry is too cheap to pay us properly" that is how it is, and as far as the economy goes, there aren't many opportunites for us to "stick it to the man" and say FU! I don't agree with having to be tipped!Tipping is something you accept when you go out to eat and if you cannot afford to tip your waitres properly, you should NOT go out to eat. The End. I've thought this since long before I was a waitress.You're not only messing with the waitress and her ability to afford to pay the bills but you're also messing with her job. If we get tips below a certain percentage, we can lose our job, lose our shifts or get seriously reprimanded for it.

ndzenowski

noelle- we don't ask for tips, but we used to make 7.00 an hour and they bumped it down to 4.00 dollars and said we could ask if a 10% gratuity was OK to add, to make up for the decrease in wage. Then they took away our ability to ask or even ring in the gratuity- leaving us making 4.00 an hour.also, we as servers didn't ake the orders. The ToGo person does- their ONLY job is to take and put together togo orders. They cannot take tables or make money any other way."asking" for tips really isn't that odd. If we have large parties we aren't allowed to just add gratuity, we have to ask you if it's ok for us to do.

Leah&Christian09

If you can't afford to tip, you can't afford to eat out.  That's the truth.Yes, tipping is not required, but neither is mailing a thank you note or holding the door for the person 2 feet behind you.  Thost things are customary, and part of living in a civilized society, and we just do them if we are decent human beings.

ootmother2

I'm really sorry because that sucks.  I tip and tip for food delivery/take out.  (we have 99% delivery in NYC, few pick up places).I just think people forget how hard the job really is.  I have flamed P2 a few times for putting down wait staff and her views on tipping.  I would suggest that the restaurant add the % gratuity and not just suggest it.  People can be VERY cheap!One knottie on her said she tipped "her girl" (hairdresser) 10%.  I would have tossed that right back the second time.  You can be short on cash once.  Twice and you know it's their habit.  Who needs that?

ndzenowski

Stage- I'm taken aback by how rude you are to me in my post- especially since you were a waitress, excuse me for jumping to conclusions, but you jumped to conclusions when you assumed I would walk around asking people to tip me.I explained that we are REQUIRED by the company to ask about adding any sort of gratuity. Also read about how they slowly decreased our wages, I'm sure you'll be appauled!! It was ridiculous!!  Times are getting rough, I get that, but they are for everyone. =(

sucrets4

If we have large parties we aren't allowed to just add gratuity, we have to ask you if it's ok for us to do. Does that thing on the menu cover that?  Because I've never once been asked if it's okay to add in the tip.

ootmother2

I'm with Leah on this one.  If you can't afford it, cook your own food at home.If you go out, tip appropriately

ndzenowski

Sucrets- yes, it's mentioned in the menu and personally, I think it's your responsiblity read it. Most people assume that when they come in large parties, they're going to have gratuity added- but we still had to ask.I've had people say "no", I've also had people not tip me properly b/c they thought gratuity was already added. (Yet when they found out it was not, they don't tip me any better, or most of the party is already gone and I have to deal with the tips from people who thought grat was added)

sucrets4

I always read it, but I have never had someone ask me if I wanted to put it on.  Does it vary by state maybe?  I don't care either way; I always read the check.

lyndausvi

that must be so awkward to ask it it's okay to add a tip.   I would be so embarrassed. I'm  happy to say it's a fireable offense to mention a tip.  So awkwardness for us. The only people who get auto-grats are banquet events. They book the entire boat privately and it's part of the signed contract.   If it's a 'normal' open trip, it does not matter how large the group is, we do NEVER add a tip.

noelle24

I explained that we are REQUIRED by the company to ask about adding any sort of gratuity.Actually, you said you were ALLOWED.  You never said you were required... this sounds like back pedaling now.As a customer, I would be a little miffed if someone asked me for a tip.  And I actually tip well because I was a waitress.  It doesn't mean that because I worked that type of job, that I tolerate rudeness.  I usually tip 15% for take-out.  If you asked me to add 10%, that's all you'd be getting.... so you'd actually lose money on me.Frankly, it sounds like your restaurant s a horrible company to work for (btw, I hope that if you didn't meet minimum wage that they bumped up your wages... if they didn't, then they were acting illegally).  And I'd be looking for another job so that, one day, I COULD say Eff You to such a shiitty place.

ndzenowski

It might just be the company, If you're at a corporate Ruby Tuesday though, they have to ask about gratuity. We actually aren't allowed to add it any more. Quite a few companies aren't supposed to grat anymore.

jnc5000

I worked at Ruby Tuesday too and got stuck with the To-Go job. I hardley ever got tips. I ended up quiting because I was harldly making minimum wage

ndzenowski

Noelle- no backpeddling at all. If we wanted to add gratiuity, we were required to ask. We aren't allowed to  just add gratuity like sucrets was talking about.And it's much safer to ask everyone for gratuity because I went from making 20 dollars tops on nights I worked ToGo to making 80 dollars. While you may tip 15% (which is always always appreciate!) the next person would more times than not, tip nothing.I no longer work there as of 3 weeks ago, I got a job working with one of my geology professors.

ndzenowski

Oh, btw we were actually supposed to ask every large party to add gratuity, so it was required in all ways- we were allowed to do so for the ToGo- sorry if I got confusing.  It was considered rude and discriminatory if we didn't ask every table if we were allowed to grat them.

sisybermudiana

Leah... that answer is absolutely perfect. 

noelle24

Yeah, I would hate working for a company where I was encouraged to ask people for tips as a way to increase my wages.  It just sucks, and I'm glad you aren't working there anymore. I'm a geology nerd myself... what kind of work are you doing now?

ndzenowski

I'm helping him with a lab for one of his low level classes. He's a sedimentologist- which is what I'm most interested in. I'm planning on going into vertebrate paleontology for grad school, so sedimentary rocks are where it's at!Yay for geology nerds!

noelle24

I liked seds the least... I prefer volcanology.  Volcanoes are way cooler than sediments, IMO :-P

ndzenowski

I'm in an igneous and metamorphic petrology class at the moment, volcanoes are pretty cool, i'll give you that. One of the kids in my class is talking about doing that.

noelle24

I'm assuming your still in undergrad at the moment? Are you planning on going straight to grad school? In this shittastic economy, we've had a lot of people deciding to do that to put off the real-world job hunting. 

ndzenowski

Yeah, I'm in my last year of undergrad. I'll have both a geology and biology degree but I don't feel thats enough to compete in this economy. Especially with people with years and years of experience.I'm applying to grad school within the next two months, hopefully I'll be able to get in right after my undergrad. I'm looking to put off paying off my student loans until I have enough education to ensure me a job or until the economy improves.

colleen1414

the amount i  tip is based on quality of service. simple as that.

crfische

I go to Ruby Tuesday's every Thursday for happy hour. 2 for 1 wine, and all. And I have never, never been asked to have a tip added on. I think i'm going to ask one of my favorite servers on Thursday about this.  

Puppylove*85

Ndzenowski ~ It sounds like Ruby Tuesday gave you a raw deal.  It makes sense to me to have "To Go" employees paid a regular hourly wage (like when you earned $7/hr).  Most people don't equate picking up an order with table service or delivery.  If they did, tips would be more frequent.  It's frustrating that some restaurants don't adequately pay their employees, but having a pay structure that anticipates tips is different from performing a service that deserves or requires a tip.  Also, customers can hardly be expected to know the pay structure at each restaurant.  In your own example, you were already adequately paid for the "To Go" work until Ruby Tuesday changed their policy.  So customers received the same product but were now expected to tip.  That hardly makes sense to me.And of course there is more that goes into preparing the food at Ruby Tuesday than at Taco Bell.  That's why customers pay a lot more than 89 cents for their food at Ruby Tuesday.Sorry, but it sounds to me that the management was to blame for inadequate compensation, not the customers.

SwedishChick2011

Ndz, it sounds like what Ruby Tuesday was doing was really wrong.  I don't know if it's illegal or not, but definitely unethical.  I don't generally tip when I pick something up to go.  But now I will probably tip at least 10% in case this is happening at other restaurants.  And also because I'm sure the servers are working hard and everyone could use a little extra these days.  Thanks for the "tip."  Bad pun, sorry.